WRAPUP 4-Torrid U.S. car sales pace slowed in September

Reuters Staff

4 Min Read

(Adds final sales figures from Autodata, paragraph 2)

By Bernie Woodall and Paul Lienert

DETROIT, Oct 1 (Reuters) - U.S. auto sales in the third quarter were the best in eight years, but mixed September results from leading automakers on Wednesday indicated the industry’s torrid summer pace is slowing.

Industry sales in September rose 9 percent, to 1.24 million vehicles, according to research firm Autodata, just missing expectations of nine analysts surveyed by Reuters. The annualized sales rate slowed to 16.4 million, according to Autodata, above last year’s 15.4 million, but well below the 17.5 million pace in August.

“The rate of growth in industry sales is beginning to moderate,” Ford chief economist Emily Kolinski Morris said on a conference call. “We are getting closer to what would be a likely plateau in terms of the industry sales pace.”

Third-quarter sales were “the best for the industry since 2006,” said Bill Fay, Toyota division group vice president and general manager.

In September, Ford sales fell 3 percent, to 180,175, as the automaker slowed production of the F-150 pickup truck, the best-selling vehicle in America, to prepare for the launch of the redesigned 2015 model. Analysts surveyed by Reuters expected a similar decline.

Toyota sales increased 2 percent, to 167,279, but analysts had forecast a 7 percent gain. The company said SUVs and crossovers helped to drive its results. Toyota’s premium Lexus brand was up 7 percent.

Some analysts were concerned that generous consumer deals, including hefty discounts, low lease rates and zero-percent financing, are stealing demand from the future.

Jessica Caldwell, senior analyst at Edmunds.com, the car shopping website, had a different take: “Automakers have struck the right chord by putting more emphasis on leases and opening credit to a larger cross-section of buyers. Expect the same trends to continue through the end of the year.”

On Tuesday, reports showed U.S. consumer confidence fell in September for the first time in five months, and home prices in July rose less than expected from a year earlier, underscoring the unsteady nature of U.S. economic growth. (Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Matthew Lewis)